Audio & Digital Tools

After hours of trial and error I was finally able to create a podcast. I couldn't embed my podcast to my blog but I was able to add it to my wiki :) Here is the Link. Podcasts are a great tool to use when teaching. Today we live in the digital world where students, children and teachers have access to so much technology. Almost all students these days have access to an Ipod, Ipad or smart phone which they use to listen to music, watch videos or play games, so why not incorporate learning into these tools so that students get the more out of learning. Podcasts gives teachers the opportunity to provide information in a variety of ways to better meet the diverse learning styles of students and the inclusion of current technology that students are using already (Macinstruct, 2013). We can use this technology for educational purposes. There are many great educational podcasts available for teachers and students to use on the internet, such as ABC, SBS, BBC and the Discovery school. I came across this website which lists ten fantastic educational podcasts.

Podcasts have many many benefits in education and for those students who are auditory/visual learners the benefits are even greater.

• can record class lectures so students can listen again in their own time or before an exam.
• 'make up lectures for students who are absent.
• can use as a recording tool during interviews with guest speakers
• ability to replay and review information helps to embed lessons in memory (Macinstruct, 2013)
• can be accessed by students when walking, on the bus, working out etc. can be used during multi-tasking.
• meets the needs of students with varying learning styles.

Here are some examples of how I would use podcasts:

• students can use podcasts to learn new vocabulary - students will record themselves saying the word then spelling it out. This will allow auditory and visual learners to memorise words by hearing and visualising what they hear they can really embed it into their memory.
• students can use it in a project where they are required to explain a topic using a podcast.

The traditional approach to teaching where teachers lecture and students take notes - is being replaced with a collaborative approach where students are creating their own content and learning in the process.

'Many educators have found that the use of technology in the classroom has changed the interest level of many students simply due to the fact that they are using technology themselves for personal reasons and are more interested in material presented through this familiar medium.' (Macinstruct, 2013). In a study done by Brittain, Gllowacki, van Ittersum & Johnson (2006) it was also found that students preferred podcasts to the other formats such as power point and video, possibly because they could listen to the podcasts while engaging in other tasks (Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King, 2010).

There are also some disadvantages of using podcasts in education, particularly when used by university students. Some academics express a concern that university students will no longer attend lectures and disengage from the academic environment (Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King, 2010). Podcasting is also argued to lead to passive learning with students focussing on the audio facility rather than actively engaging with the content (Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King, 2010). It is argued that podcasting does not support the constructivist learning that is dominant in education today, as the constructivist view maintains that 'deep learning occurs when a learner is actively engaged in learning activities' (Scutter, Stupans, Sawyer & King, 2010). I don't necessarily agree with this as I believe podcasting is an engaging tool if of course used for the right purpose. The examples I have given above are quite engaging activities that would support constructivist learning in both primary and secondary.

The privacy concerns that are evident when using other tools such as images and videos is not a concern when using podcasts, as students speaking during a podcast do not have to identify themselves by name. Images are not added to any podcast so the privacy issues should be minimal for parents and teachers (Fryer, 2012 ). Despite this teachers should still get permission from parents before they publish any student podcasts. Like with any digital tool students need to be educated with copyright obligations. They may download music into their podcast or use a recording of an interview they have found on the web and have incorporated it into their podcast. Students need to be aware of copyright friendly music files or reference/acknowledge the source of their resources (Fryer, 2012)

Voice Threads

During my exploration of auditory tools I also came across voice threads, which I found very interesting. A voice thread allows multiple people from anywhere in the world to leave a thread of auditory comments/messages. A Voice Thread is referred to as 'a conversation in the cloud' (Voice thread, 2013). You only require a computer and the internet to create your own thread, there is no software to install. Voice threads would be a great way for students to interact with others and share their thoughts verbally.

Here is an example of one that shows how it works and the video below gives us some more information.

VOKI Podcast

  

After a frustrating few days of trying to upload my Voki podcast I finally did it! With the help of a dear friend of cause :). I really enjoyed creating my Voki it was fun and creative. Voki podcasts a great tool that can be used by students and teachers. Teachers can use it during class to introduce a new topic or have students create one to describe their experiences during an excursion, there is so much that can be done with it. I think the younger students would probably enjoy it the most. Using this tool in class will really engage students especially if the teacher records their own voices when creating the podcast. It is a fun, creative way of teaching and learning, and not so boring for the students.



REFERENCES:

Fryer, W. A. (2012), Tools For The Teks: Intergrating Technology in the Classroom, Retrieved From: http: www.wtvi.com/teks/05_06_articles/classroom-audio-podcasting.html

Macinstruct, (2013). Retrieved from: http://voicethread.com/about/features/. Accessed 27/03/2013

Scutter, S., Stupans, I., Sawyer, T. and King, S. (2010). Australasian Journal of Educational Technology: How do students use podcasts to support learning? Retrieved from: http://www.ascillite.org.au/ajet/ajet26/scutter.pdf. Accessed 28/03/13.

Voice Thread, (2013). Retrieved from: http://voicethread.com/about/features/. Accessed 27/03/2013